Greg McElroy Reveals Potential Concern For Kirby Smart, Georgia

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart spoke bluntly about the state of his roster in Athens as the Bulldogs prepare to open the 2024 college football season against Clemson in less than two weeks.

AP and Coaches No. 1, Heisman Trophy contender at quarterback and one of the best blue-chip ratios in the sport – There aren't many holes to find with UGA as this point, at least on paper.

But Smart shared a different perspective after a fall camp practice last week.

"I feel like we have less depth than we've ever had, and that's kind of a common theme talking to other coaches I talk to," Smart said. "I call it the deterioration of football because every year we've been here I feel like we've had more players capable of going in and play winning football and every year that goes down."

ESPN analyst Greg McElroy attempted to dissect what Smart's concern with Georgia's depth could mean in the grand scheme of things as we draw closer to the beginning of the season.

"Coaches don't think about, 'Okay, here's what I have...,'" McElroy said on "Always College Football." "Coaches are always trained to think in, 'What's going to get me beat?' What are they concerned about on their roster?"

McElroy's point here is sound. Like most coaches, Smart doesn't praise what his teams do really well to the media. But he doesn't shy from pointing out the holes that could cause issues down the road.

"I've learned that from coach Saban," McElroy continued. "I've learned that from other coaches... They need to see the blind spots. That's where coaches live."

Smart didn't elaborate on which specific area gives him the most concern regarding depth. But we can assume its the number of inexperienced players expected to serve as rotational pieces and backups.

The 2023 defensive line didn't live up to the lofty expectations that Georgia has grown accustomed to. After leading the country in rush defense in 2022, the Bulldogs fell to No. 20 in that category last season.

Two starters return from last year's unit in Nazir Stackhouse and Warren Brinson, who has been limited in fall camp with an Achilles injury. Rotational pieces Jordan Hall (stress fractures) and Xzavier McLeod (undisclosed) have also been limited.

"The biggest problem with what Kirby Smart and Georgia are dealing with is that they don't have competitive depth," McElroy said. "And it's not a Georgia problem, it's just a matter of perspective from Georgia's angle..."

The secondary is facing a similar challenge after losing three starters to the NFL draft. While Georgia signed the No. 1 class in the 2024 cycle, including five-star defensive backs Ellis Robinson IV and KJ Bolden, the youth in the back end could be labeled as a concern.

McElroy believes that the transfer portal has played a large part in the lack of depth among the nation's top teams. The Bulldogs lost a program-record 24 players to the portal in the 2024 cycle.

"If a star player gets hurt, they're likely going to be very young and that makes most coaches uncomfortable," McElroy added. "So I think he's a 100% true in telling us, 'Hey, we don't have the depth that we once had because our backups are now leaving to become starters elsewhere.'"

It's important to note that any preseason concern can be put to rest with play on the field. We've seen "inexperienced" players rise to stardom quickly before. Who's to say that won't be the case for the Bulldogs this season?

Georgia-Clemson will kick off from Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium at noon ET on Aug. 31 (ABC).

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